In-Store Tobacco Marketing Strategies Reaching Kids
Tobacco companies spend the bulk of their marketing money at the retail stores with price discounts, prime product placement to attract buyers and, of course, advertisements. In 2012, of the $9.6 billion spent by tobacco companies on advertising and promotional expenditures, 95 percent ($9.2 billion) was spent on point-of-sale advertisements and price-related marketing, including point-of-sale ads, price discounts, promotional allowances, coupons and special deals such as buy-one-get-one-free offers.15
In 2012, the Surgeon General reported that tobacco marketing at the point of sale is associated with youth tobacco use.16 This makes the pervasiveness of tobacco promotion in retail outlets, which has few restrictions and has been documented in multiple studies, significant to tobacco prevention efforts.